''Gonin'' ( ja, ゴニン (５人) or, in some English-language editions, ''The Five'') is a

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The Great Hanshin earthquake str ...

crime film directed by Takashi Ishii and starring

Takeshi Kitano is a Japanese comedian, television presenter, actor, filmmaker, and author. While he is known primarily as a comedian and TV host in his native Japan, he is better known abroad for his work as a filmmaker and actor as well as TV host. With th ...

, Kōichi Satō and

Masahiro Motoki Masahiro Motoki (本木雅弘 ''Motoki Masahiro'', born December 21, 1965) is a Japanese actor. He portrayed protagonist Daigo Kobayashi in '' Departures'', which won the 81st Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film. His performance earne ...

. This was the first film Kitano starred in after his 1994 motorcycle accident. The eyepatch the character wears was because his right eye was still leaking fluids.

Summary

Bandai (Sato) is a disco owner whose business, following the collapse of Japan's

bubble economy An economic bubble (also called a speculative bubble or a financial bubble) is a period when current asset prices greatly exceed their intrinsic valuation, being the valuation that the underlying long-term fundamentals justify. Bubbles can be ...

, is slowly disintegrating, and who owes debts he cannot possibly pay to the local

Yakuza , also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the ter ...

. His solution is to rob the gangsters, for which purpose he assembles a team consisting of other casualties of the economic downturn—including a gay hustler (Motoki) who frequents his club, a down-on-his-luck ex-cop (Jinpachi Nezu), an unbalanced

salaryman In Japan, a is a salaried worker. In Japanese popular culture, this is embodied by a white-collar worker who shows overriding loyalty and commitment to the corporation where he works. Salarymen are expected to work long hours, to put in addit ...

(

Naoto Takenaka is a Japanese actor, comedian, singer, and director from Kanazawa-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, affiliated with From First Production. He is married to idol singer and actress Midori Kinouchi. He is also known as the voice of Samuel L. ...

), and a Thai pimp (Kippei Shiina). The hastily planned heist goes off awkwardly, and the Yakuza start tracking down the conspirators, hiring a team of hitmen (Kitano and Kazuya Kimura) to take out the thieves.

Cast

* Kōichi Satō as Mikihiko Bandai *

as Junichi Mitsuya * Jinpachi Nezu as Kaname Hizu *

Kippei Shiina is a Japanese actor. Career Shiina portrayed John Rain and co-starred in Max Mannix's '' Rain Fall'' (2009) with Gary Oldman. He starred in Takeshi Kitano's '' Outrage'' (2010). Filmography Film *''Wangan Bad Boy Blue'' (1992) *''A Night in Nu ...

as Jimmy *

as Shohei Ogiwara * Megumi Yokoyama as Nammy *

Eiko Nagashima is a Japanese actress. She won the award for best actress at the 5th Yokohama Film Festival and the award for best supporting actress at the 8th Hochi Film Award for '' Ryuji''. Selected filmography Film * ''Crazy Fruit'' (1981) * ''Ryuji'' (1 ...

as Saki * Maiko Kawakami as Hostess at Pinky *

Hideo Murota was a Japanese actor who specialized in playing villains and tough guys. In 1957, he signed a contract with Toei Studio and appeared in over 1000 films. He won the Best Supporting Actor award at the Yokohama Film Festival for his role in '' Shi ...

as Shikine *

Kazuya Kimura is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Kazuya can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *一八, "one, eight" *一矢, "one, arrow" *一也, "one, to be" *一夜, "one, night" *和也, "harmony, to be" *和矢, ...

as Kazuma Shibata *

Shingo Tsurumi is a Japanese actor. Career Shingo Tsurumi has appeared in the films such as Katsuhito Ishii's '' Shark Skin Man and Peach Hip Girl'', Hideo Nakata's '' L: Change the World'', and Tak Sakaguchi's ''Yakuza Weapon''. Filmography Films * ''Tonda ...

as Shigeru Hisamatsu *

Toshiyuki Nagashima is a Japanese actor. He won the award for Best Newcomer at the 3rd Hochi Film Awards for '' Kaerazaru hibi'' and for Best Actor at the 6th Hochi Film Awards for '' Enrai''. Selected filmography Film *'' Kaerazaru hibi'' (1978) *''Third Base'' ...

as Yasumasa Ogoshi *

as Ichiro Kyoya

References

External links

* * *
Gonin
' at the Japanese Movie Database 1995 films 1995 crime drama films 1995 crime thriller films 1990s heist films Films directed by Takashi Ishii Japanese crime drama films Japanese crime thriller films 1990s Japanese-language films Japanese heist films Yakuza films 1990s Japanese films {{1990s-Japan-film-stub